Hidden Treasures (EP)

Hidden Treasures is an EP by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on July 18, 1995, via Capitol Records. The album features songs that originally appeared on film soundtracks and tribute albums. Four of the tracks were released as singles, and three have received Grammy Award nominations for Best Metal Performance. Despite having garnered mediocre or negative reviews, the material on the EP has been credited with helping expand the group's MTV audience in the early 1990s.

Hidden Treasures
The cover features a map of north-central Arizona; some of the cities on the map are named for some of the EP's songs.
EP by
Megadeth
ReleasedJuly 18, 1995 (1995-07-18)
Recorded1987–94
GenreHeavy metal
Length29:16
LabelCapitol
ProducerMax Norman, Dave Mustaine
Megadeth chronology
Youthanasia
(1994)		 Hidden Treasures
(1995)		 Cryptic Writings
(1997)
Japanese Limited Edition cover

Background and songs

Hidden Treasures is a rarities compilation that features songs that Megadeth had recorded for a number of projects, but had not released on one of the band's studio albums.[†] Most of these were contributions to film soundtracks.[1] In 1989, Megadeth recorded a version of Alice Cooper's "No More Mr. Nice Guy" for the soundtrack to the Wes Craven-directed horror film Shocker.[2] It marks drummer Nick Menza's recording debut with the band.[3] The recording was released as a single and peaked at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart in 1990.[4] "Go to Hell" appeared on the Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey soundtrack in 1991.[5] The song features the same prayer, "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep", used in "Enter Sandman" by Metallica, and can be heard at the beginning of the track.[6]

The band contributed three songs to soundtracks in 1993. "Angry Again", recorded during the sessions for Countdown to Extinction, appeared on the soundtrack to Last Action Hero and received a nomination for "Best Metal Performance" at the 1993 Grammy Awards.[5] The song has appeared on several of the band's compilations.[7][8] "Breakpoint" appeared on the soundtrack for the Super Mario Bros. film.[9] "99 Ways to Die" was recorded for the soundtrack to The Beavis and Butt-head Experience and released as a single and a music video. It was nominated in the "Best Metal Performance" category at the 1995 Grammy Awards.[10]

"Diadems" was released on the Demon Knight soundtrack in 1995.[11] In addition to soundtrack contributions, the band submitted a cover of Black Sabbath's "Paranoid" for the tribute album Nativity in Black in 1994. It was nominated for "Best Metal Performance" at the 1996 Grammy Awards.[12] "Problems" is a Sex Pistols cover[1] and was previously unreleased.[13]

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[14]

While initially released in Europe as a bonus disc for a special edition of Youthanasia, Hidden Treasures was released as a stand-alone EP in Japan and the US on July 18, 1995.[1][15] It debuted at number 90 on the Billboard 200 chart and sold 13,000 copies in its first week.[16] By December 2005, Hidden Treasures sold 286,000 copies in the United States.[17] It also appeared on album chart in the UK, but did not achieve notable success.[18] The album has gone out of print in the US, but was reissued in 2007 for the Japanese and European markets.[15]

The EP has received generally mediocre reaction from critics. AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that the EP does not have many "first-rate songs" and that only "99 Ways to Die" made an impression.[1] The Rolling Stone Album Guide was dismissive of the EP; the staff reviewer commented that the album is worth hearing only for "99 Ways to Die".[14] Dean Golemis of the Chicago Tribune wrote that the album is "typical Megadeth" featuring "fast-forward riffing" and "snooty snarling" vocals.[6] Carlos Ramirez from Noisecreep felt that the album contains many underrated songs that "also deserve their time in the spotlight" and highlighted the dueling guitar leads by Mustaine and Friedman featured in "Go to Hell".[5] Despite the negative reviews, material featured on the EP has been credited with helping expand the group's MTV audience in the early 1990s.[19]

Track listing

All credits adapted from the Hidden Treasures liner notes.[13]

No.TitleWriter(s)Original appearanceLength
1."No More Mr. Nice Guy" (Alice Cooper cover)
1989 – Shocker (soundtrack)3:02
2."Breakpoint"
1993 – Super Mario Bros. (soundtrack)3:29
3."Go to Hell"
  • Mustaine
  • Ellefson
  • Menza
1991 – Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (soundtrack)4:36
4."Angry Again"Mustaine1993 – Last Action Hero (soundtrack)3:47
5."99 Ways to Die"Mustaine1993 – The Beavis and Butt-Head Experience3:58
6."Paranoid" (Black Sabbath cover)
1994 – Nativity in Black: A Tribute to Black Sabbath ~ Vol. 12:32
7."Diadems"Mustaine1995 – Demon Knight (soundtrack)3:55
8."Problems" (Sex Pistols cover)
1995 – A Tout le Monde3:57
Total length:29:16
Japanese edition[††] and 2007 edition bonus tracks[20]
No.TitleWriter(s)Original appearanceLength
1."A Tout le Monde" (radio edit)
  • Mustaine
  • Ellefson
  • Friedman
  • Menza
1995 – A Tout le Monde4:29
2."Symphony of Destruction" (demo)Mustaine1995 – A Tout le Monde5:29
3."Architecture of Aggression" (demo)
  • Mustaine
  • Ellefson
1995 – A Tout le Monde2:49
4."New World Order" (demo)
  • Mustaine
  • Ellefson
  • Friedman
  • Menza
1995 – A Tout le Monde3:47

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes.[13]

Megadeth

Production

  • Production: Desmond Child and Dave Mustaine (track 1); Max Norman and Mustaine (tracks 2–8)
  • Engineering: Max Norman (tracks 2–8)
  • Mixing: Max Norman (tracks 2–6); Norman and Mustaine (tracks 7–8)
  • Guitar/bass/amplifier technician: Michael Kaye (tracks 4–8)
  • Drum technician: Bruce Jacoby (tracks 4–8)

Chart performance
Chart (1995) Peak
position
Japanese Albums Chart (Oricon) 13
UK Albums Chart (OCC)[18] 28
US Billboard 200 (Billboard)[21] 90

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Gold 50,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes
  • ^ † "Breakpoint" and "Go to Hell" appear as bonus tracks on the original Japanese release of Countdown to Extinction[23]
  • ^ †† The track listing of the Japanese edition features the bonus tracks as tracks 1–4; "No More Mr. Nice Guy" becomes track 5, and all subsequent songs are also displaced four tracks back.[24]
  • ^ ††† À tout le monde is listed as a radio edit on the 2007 edition, but it is the regular album version.
  • ^ †††† New World Order is listed as a demo on the 2007 edition, but it actually is the final version with the guitar parts in the pre-chorus section that were missing in the demo version on the 2004 remastered re-release bonus track of Youthanasia.

References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Megadeth – Hidden Treasures". AllMusic. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  2. Buckley 2003, p. 660.
  3. Ellefson 2013, p. 85.
  4. Rees & Crampton 1999, p. 658.
  5. Ramirez, Carlos. "10 Most Underrated Megadeth Songs". Noisecreep. Retrieved October 27, 2013.
  6. Golemis, Dean (November 9, 1995). "Megadeth: Hidden Treasures (Capitol)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  7. Birchmeier, Jason (June 28, 2005). "Megadeth – Greatest Hits: Back to the Start". AllMusic. Retrieved November 9, 2010.
  8. Monger, James Christopher. "Megadeth – Anthology: Set the World Afire". Allmusic. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
  9. Guglielmi 2002, p. 530.
  10. Staff writer (January 6, 1995). "The 37th Grammy Nominations". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  11. Henderson, Alex. "Tales From the Crypt: Demon Knight". AllMusic. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
  12. "Dave Mustaine Leaves Megadeth, Group Disbands After 20 Years Together". Blabbermouth.net. April 3, 2002. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  13. Hidden Treasures liner notes (Media notes). Capitol Records. 1995. p. 2.
  14. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p. 534. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  15. "Megadeth Discography – Hidden Treasures". Megadeth.com. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  16. Mayfield, Geoff (July 5, 1997). "Between the Bullets". Billboard. p. 96. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  17. "Megadeth: Album Sales Update". Blabbermouth.net. December 16, 2005. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
  18. Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK: M – My Vitriol". Zobbel. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  19. Gulla 2006, p. 214.
  20. Hidden Treasures back panel (2007 international CD) (Media notes). Capitol Records/EMI. 2007.
  21. "Megadeth Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  22. "Canadian album certifications – Megadeth – Hidden Treasures". Music Canada.
  23. Countdown to Extinction (Japanese edition) (liner notes). Capitol Records. 1992. p. 3.
  24. Hidden Treasures (Japanese CD) (back panel). Capitol Records/Toshiba EMI. 1995.

Bibliography
  • Gulla, Bob (2006). The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Rock History: The Grunge and Post-Grunge Years, 1991–2005. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-32981-8.
  • Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
  • Rees, Dafydd; Crampton, Luke, eds. (1999). Rock stars encyclopedia. DK Publishing. ISBN 0-7894-4613-8.
  • Guglielmi, Federico (2002). Grande enciclopedia rock. Giunti Editore. ISBN 88-09-02852-X.
  • Ellefson, David; McIver, Joel (2013). My Life With Deth: Discovering Meaning in a Life of Rock & Roll. Howard Books. ISBN 978-1-4516-9988-3.
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